


When Everything Went Wrong

by Flowing_River, JustAnotherWriter (N1ghtshade), N1ghtshade



Category: MacGyver (TV 2016)
Genre: AU, Episode: s02e15 Murdoc + Handcuffs, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Mac Whump, Non-Consensual Touching, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Stalking, Torture
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-18
Updated: 2020-03-16
Packaged: 2020-10-21 09:46:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 21
Words: 19,318
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20691482
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Flowing_River/pseuds/Flowing_River, https://archiveofourown.org/users/N1ghtshade/pseuds/JustAnotherWriter, https://archiveofourown.org/users/N1ghtshade/pseuds/N1ghtshade
Summary: “Mac?” Jack spins in a circle, calling out softly. “Mac, where are you, hoss?”There’s no answer but the winter wind whipping through broken windowpanes. Jack spins around again, hoping that for some reason Mac decided this was a good time to play a really bad joke on him.That’s when he sees it. Red smears on the floor. Not much, but he knows blood when he sees it."As it happens, Jack isn't the only one who becomes bait in Mac's plan to trap Helman and Murdoc. And Murdoc has some plans of his own...





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! I know I'm in the middle of another story, but N1ghtshade told me about this idea she had and it gave me a lot of ideas too, so we decided to write this together! I hope y'all like it and we apologize in advance ;)

“And let me guess, the role of bait will be played by yours truly, Jack Dalton.” Jack sighs.

“Just long enough for me to incapacitate him.” Mac’s still tying a few knots in whatever trap he’s concocting. He can do his brainy nerd thing and Jack will make sure he doesn’t die. _Better me playing the bait than him._ If Mac isn’t safely in hiding by the time Jack comes back with Helman, he’s going to shoot the kid himself.

_Not really, but I’m afraid Mac is going to do something stupid._ Jack checks his gun one last time, there’s still the exact same amount of bullets in it. Six. _That better be enough for Helman and Murdoc._

Jack doesn’t like the thought of Murdoc loose in here with Mac. He actually hates that more than the thought of Helman finding the kid first. Helman would probably just shoot Mac. Murdoc will make it slow, and painful, and personal. 

But he can’t deal with all the problems at once, and right now the problem he needs to face is Helman. _Okay, if I was a world-class assassin, trying to kill another assassin and his very much not friends, where would I go?_

Jack’s Delta training tells him he’d take the high ground with a good line of sight. Any good sniper worth their salt knows that. But he also knows that Helman has a shotgun. Not very accurate, but wide-pattern shot. So a close range ambush would be the best choice with that type of gun. _So I would choose a place with a lot of hiding places._ Jack knows there were stacks of shipping containers in part of the warehouse that he and Mac ran through. If he was Helman, that’s where he’d wait.

Jack keeps an eye on every moving shadow, every dry leaf that skitters across the floor in the wind. There’s a clatter from his left somewhere and he turns and fires two of his precious bullets that way, but it’s only a mangy stray cat that dashes off in a fright. Jack sighs. _Well, I just gave away my position._ But there’s no boom of a shotgun. 

There is something. Further away, the sharp report of a pistol firing. _Helman didn’t..._Jack is running before he even fully comprehends what he’s thinking. Past the crates, through the doors, and into the room where Mac laid his net trap.

It’s empty.

“Mac?” Jack spins in a circle, calling out softly. “Mac, where are you, hoss?”

There’s no answer but the winter wind whipping through broken windowpanes. Jack spins around again, hoping that for some reason Mac decided this was a good time to play a really bad joke on him. 

That’s when he sees it. Red smears on the floor. Not much, but he knows blood when he sees it. And judging by the fact that he heard a gunshot, and Mac practically won’t fire a gun if his life depends on it, It’s probably Mac’s blood. 

“Damn it.” Jack stands up quickly, only to come face to face with someone he was really hoping Mac would be here to catch.

“Lost something?” Helman’s voice is rough and gravelly, harsh. He’s pointing the shotgun at Jack with his finger on the trigger. 

“None of your business if I did.” Jack may not be able to react in time to stop Helman shooting him, but he might at least take the guy down with him if he does.

“I think it is my business, since Dennis is my, dare I say, protege.” Helman steps forward, lowering the shotgun slightly. 

_Dennis?_

“That didn’t work out too well for you, did it?” Jack can’t help but snap, figuring Helman was talking about Murdoc. He knows this probably isn’t a good idea with a shotgun pointed towards him, but since Helman hasn’t shot him yet, he knows he still has some time to at least come up with a plan.

Helman’s eyes narrow, “I taught him a bit too well, didn’t I?”

Jack doesn’t bother Helman with an answer, instead trying to look around the room to find something to help to take him down without letting Helman notice. _Every second I spend with this mad man is one Mac spends with Murdoc._

He just needs a moment to distract Helman, even a split second would give him a window to take Helman down. 

“What are you looking at?” Helman snaps.

_So much for being subtle. I guess it’s time to improvise._ His heart clenches at the thought of Mac.

Jack smirks, turning his attention back on Helman, “Nothing.”

Helman narrows his eyes once again, looking at him like he’s trying to decide whether or not to believe him. Jack glances to the side again, pretending he’s actually looking at something besides the wall.

_Please, please turn around._ It’ll give him enough time to take Helman down. 

Jack feels like he can barely breathe in anticipation. It’s been too long since Mac disappeared and any longer, he might just lose him.  
Finally, Helman risks a glance to the side and Jack attacks. He grabs the shotgun and pushes it upward so that when it goes off it misses him. Helman seems surprised at his bold actions and Jack uses that to his advantage. Helman may have been highly talented assassin, but Jack was former Delta and CIA. And Helman doesn’t stand a chance with his added advantage of how desperate he is to find Mac. 

It doesn’t take long for Jack to wrestle the shotgun out of Helman’s hands and point it at him.  
“Don’t move,” he bites out.

Helman raises his hands, he seems surprised and a bit impressed.

Jack gestures with the shotgun to the rope near whatever concoction Mac had been making.

“Tie your hands up.”

He doesn’t trust Helman not to attack him if he tries to tie him up himself. Helman hesitates before grabbing the rope and managing to tie his wrists together. Jack picks up his own gun from where he had dropped it on the ground and points it at Helman while walking up to him and tightening the knots on the rope. Once he’s satisfied, he gestures with the gun again toward the door, slinging the shotgun over his shoulder just in case he needs it.

“Come on, let’s go.”


	2. Chapter 2

Mac glares over at Murdoc. He shifts uncomfortably, the handcuffs restraining his hands biting into his wrists. He wishes they were at least a bit looser, but Murdoc knows him too well. He can barely feel his hands which means he can’t get out of the cuffs. And even if he could, he doubts he can go very far. He’s definitely at a disadvantage, especially with the bullet graze on his upper arm.

Jack had barely left the room to find Helman when Murdoc had walked in, pointing the gun at him. He hadn’t wasted any time, tossing a pair of handcuffs at Mac and telling him to restrain his hands behind his back. Mac hadn’t listened, of course, and that’s when Murdoc had stepped forward, shooting him in the arm. Things had been a bit of a haze after that because of the pain, but the next thing he knew, he was sitting in the passenger seat of the police car, with his hands cuffed painfully.  _ Maybe I should have done it myself, I might have been able to give myself a way out _ . But with his hands behind his back, he can’t even reach one of the paperclips in his jacket pocket. 

Murdoc must have noticed him glaring because he says, “What’s wrong, Angus?” The purr in his voice when he says Mac’s name makes him shiver. 

Mac doesn’t answer him.

“Uncomfortable, isn’t it?”

“We didn’t shoot you,” Mac bites.

“No, but you did handcuff me. So I think we’re even.” Murdoc shrugs. “And besides, they look better on you than on me. Or at least I think so.” His smile is cruel, and twisted. “A shame we can’t ask Papa Bear who wore it better, eh?”

Mac tries not to think about Jack, and about how much he wants Jack to come get him out of this.“Where are you taking me?”

“Hmm, I don’t know yet. Somewhere where I can have some fun with you without being interrupted.”

Mac shivers. Murdoc’s idea of fun, if the last time he was alone with Mac was any indication, is going to be very painful and involve plenty of things Mac would like to keep far away from him. “They’ll find us. Jack will find us.”

“No, I don’t think so. After all we left him all alone with Helman. And how many bullets does he have left, again? He was very clear about that, I couldn’t help but overhear him complaining...No, I think Helman will kill him, dump the body somewhere and that’s the last we’ll hear of Jack Dalton.”

“Jack can easily take Helman.” Mac twists his wrists again; the blood running down from the gash in his upper arm has made it to his hand and it’s possible it will make his skin slick enough to slide in the cuffs...it’s a long shot but it’s all he has, and he can’t sit here listening to Murdoc’s sick plans and do nothing. 

“Oh can he? He hasn’t been able to take me down. And I think he’ll be quite distracted by the fact that you disappeared.”

Mac doesn’t bother arguing with Murdoc, he knows Jack’s skills and he knows Jack could easily take down Helman. But Murdoc is right about one thing, no one is going to find Mac. By the time Jack realizes he’s gone, it’ll be too late. And it’s not like Jack even has a car. And as far as Phoenix is concerned, he and Jack still have Murdoc and are running from Helman. By the time they realize something is wrong, it’ll be too late.

Murdoc glances over at him, smiling a little too widely to be anything but eerie. “Still not convinced Jack is dead? Trust me, Helman trained me, I know him better than anyone. He could take down a whole team of Deltas easily. Dalton’s nothing compared to that. And what do you think Phoenix will think when they finally find his body in a few days? They’ll realize Helman must have caught up to us, killed both of you and taken off with me. They won’t bother looking for us, they’ll think I’m as good as dead. They’ll think you’re dead. So you should get any hopes of rescue out of your head because no one is coming for you. You’re mine now, to do whatever I want to do with you. So if you’d please stop struggling with those cuffs? You can do that later, you know.”


	3. Chapter 3

“You know, if you’d taken my advice and just shot that driver, we wouldn’t be walking through a blizzard.” Helman’s casual comment is actually more chilling than the winter wind whipping Jack’s face and hands. 

“Okay, that is truly, definitely psycho. But I think I’m beginning to understand where Murdoc gets his brand of crazy.”

“Do you know what the actual definition of insanity is?”

Jack does. Mac has said it often enough. “Doing the same thing the same way and expecting different results.”

“Which is why we are never going to get a car to stop unless you do something a little more...creative.” Jack’s been trying to get a car to pull over; he’d feel bad about stranding some random driver but honestly he’s going to do whatever it takes to get Mac back from Murdoc. But he’d rather not shoot someone in the process; Mac would be devastated if he ever found out Jack had done that to try to save him.

Jack wonders if this area is near a prison or if there’s a ring of actual carjackers around, because every vehicle he’s tried to stop (not that there are many on the road at all in this storm) has floored it and veered around him. He’s tempted to throw Helman into the road like one of those cartoons with the guy tied to a railroad track, but he’s not quite that desperate yet either. Helman knows Murdoc better than anyone else, and he might need that knowledge to get Mac back alive. 

There’s something large and dark up ahead. Jack can’t tell exactly what it is through the snow, but it looks like a building. And with a building, there should be cars. Hopefully unoccupied cars.

Sure enough, the small gas station/convenience store has several vehicles parked outside. Jack smashes out the passenger window of a black pickup and unlocks it. If he’s driving, he doesn’t particularly want to get a face full of snow from a busted window, but he doesn’t exactly have a faster way to get in. _If Mac was here, he woulda opened it up with a paperclip and his knife in about three seconds._ He shakes off the thought. He’s going to get Mac back and it’s going to be okay.

The truck he picked is old enough to hotwire, he made sure of that before he smashed out the window. _Thank goodness for guys in old farming towns who have the same pickup until it dies on the side of the road._ That’s how it always was back home in Texas. 

“Okay, Bad Santa, where do you think your old partner would go?” Jack asks once they’re pulled out onto the road. 

“Oh, you won’t find Dennis until he wants to be found.” Helman says. “I taught him to vanish.”

“Well, then, unvanish him. You found him once, I’m sure you could do it again if you really wanted to.”

“And why would I want to?”

“Because you wanted to kill him as of an hour ago. Which I would not have a problem with, to be honest, right now.” Jack shrugs. “So, how ‘bout it, you help me find Murdoc, I help you put him in a hole in the ground.”

“If he does what I taught him to do, he’ll stay away from populated areas.” Helman glances out the broken window. 

“Well, newsflash, that’s about everywhere around here.” This is farmland, with a few scattered towns and houses, spread out over miles of fields and pastureland. The roads are all but deserted, and if what Jack’s seen of the abandoned railroad depot and the little gas station are any indication, this area is all but a ghost town. Lots of empty houses and foreclosed farms for Murdoc to take his pick of. 

“I told you. If he doesn’t want to be found, he won’t be.” 

“Yeah, well, he’s got my partner with him, who very much does want to be found, so I’m guessing Mac’s gonna leave me a nice little trail of breadcrumbs.” Jack only hopes the kid can. If Murdoc’s knocked him out, there’s no chance of that. Jack won’t let himself think of any worse scenario. 

The tire tracks from the police car went north on the road before the snow drowned them, the same direction Jack is driving now. But there are multiple side roads, field trails, and two-track lanes branching off, and the snow is so thick by now that there’s no way to know which, if any, Murdoc would have chosen. 

Jack pulls over and debates his options. Keep driving, hoping Murdoc wanted to put some distance between him and Helman, or start taking his chances on the houses in the neighborhood and see if any of them are a potential hiding place. 

_Helman knows what Murdoc would do alone. But he hasn’t had to deal with Murdoc hauling around a kidnapping victim, more than likely._ Murdoc normally kills his victims fast and from a distance. Mac is the exception. 

The last time Murdoc took Mac, he didn’t go far. True, he’d had a place set up beforehand, but still, he hadn’t done that outside of L.A. He was confident no one would find him before he wanted to be found. And from the way Murdoc’s been watching Mac the whole time they were in that car, Jack is pretty sure he’s wanted to get his hands on the kid for a while. _And he doesn’t strike me as the patient type._

Which means Murdoc probably started looking for an abandoned house or barn in the area. And if he took this road, he would have the same chances of finding an abandoned place as Jack does now. _He wouldn’t take the first one. That’s a stupid move, and he’s anything but stupid. Crazy, unhinged, psychotic, but not stupid._

Jack pulls back onto the road. _Time to start trying to think like a murderous psychopath…_


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We will be posting a new chapter of this fic every Monday, to keep a regular schedule on it...

Murdoc smiles at the sight of the ramshackle barn up ahead. The snow is making driving more and more difficult, and he knows the roads won’t be passable for much longer, especially not with the low body of the police car. 

He drives up the rutted, dirt-trail lane to the barn, getting out long enough to open and close the gate behind him. At the very least, that will make his trail a little more difficult to follow, as long as the snow covers the car tracks soon enough. He doubts anyone is looking for them, Dalton is probably in a ditch and Helman, well, he’s probably long gone. Murdoc grins as he walks back to the car. 

If everything goes according to plan, he’ll have plenty of quality time to spend with Angus. No one even knows the boy’s been kidnapped. By the time his people figure that out...Murdoc chuckles as he slides back into the driver’s seat.

The barn doors aren’t wide enough to pull the police car into, at least not the ones on this side. He drives the vehicle around to the side and parks under the overhang of the roof. Between the roof and the snow, the vehicle should be hard to see. And besides, he’d prefer to have the space inside the barn open. He doesn’t know what he might want to do until he sees what he has to work with. 

Inside, the barn is barely warmer than the wind howling around the corners. There are boards missing, and at the far end, one whole chunk of the tin roof has torn away in some storm. But the place is still full of interesting things. There’s a haymow with a pitchfork still in it, and Murdoc takes note of that particular tool.  _ A bit much, to start out with, though. _ He’d rather do more superficial damage to begin with. That way, Angus will last longer. 

He notices MacGyver looking around with the same curiosity. He’s clearly trying to find something that will help him escape. Murdoc shakes his head.  _ Always the stubborn one. Never giving up. _

The haymow does give Murdoc another idea, one more connected to the network of pulleys and ropes stretching across the ceiling. He tugs on the rope to test its strength, and it appears not to be rotted out yet. _ This ought to keep him from going anywhere. _

He reaches for Angus’s arms, checking the cuffs. They’re coated in blood now, as are the boy’s hands, but they’re still intact. Angus pulls away from his touch, eyes wide.

“What’s this?” Murdoc says. “Are you really this afraid of me?”

MacGyver doesn’t answer him, but the panting breaths fogging the air tell Murdoc he’s right. Angus is terrified of him, especially of his touch. 

Murdoc reaches for the hay hook and pulls it down, holding it in one hand and the cuffs in the other. Angus is panting even harder, he knows what’s coming. He also knows that if Murdoc lifts him with his hands cuffed behind him, it’s going to dislocate his shoulders immediately. Murdoc smiles.  _ Sometimes it’s so fun to hurt the smart ones. They know what’s coming. _

But he stops as he sees a small room open off the side of the barn. Some sort of tack room, judging by the saddles and bridles and other items inside. 

“I’m feeling generous today,” Murdoc says. “After all, you did save my life back there. So, if you promise not to cause any trouble, I’ll let you cuff your hands in front of you.” He keeps his hand on his gun, just in case. “As long as you do exactly what I tell you.”

He can tell Angus is weighing his options.  _ Eventually, he’ll realize that if he wants any chance of escape, it’ll be better to have his arms somewhat functional. And he’ll agree. _ As much as MacGyver will hate bargaining with Murdoc, he’ll be trying to use whatever he’s offered to his own advantage. 

“Alright.” It’s the faintest whisper, and Murdoc can tell it’s forced. But it’s the answer he was hoping for.

He unlocks the cuffs and pushes Angus forward. “Now, before you put those back on, take off your shirt and jacket.” He can see the tremor running through the boy’s body, clearly that was an unexpected and unnerving request. As he was hoping.

“What…”

“I said to do what I told you. And you took my deal. Tap, tap, no takebacks now.” Murdoc says, reinforcing his words with a small shake of his gun. MacGyver follows his instructions slowly, cringing as he works the bloodsoaked cloth off over his wounded arm. When his hands are cuffed again, this time in front of him, Murdoc attaches the chain of the cuffs to the hay hook and begins hoisting up the rope. 

When Angus’s toes are just brushing the straw underfoot, Murdoc stops, ties off the rope, and begins to pace around his captive. He trails his fingers over the white and brown scars lining MacGyver’s upper body. There’s a dark brown one on his chest, near the left shoulder, a collection of burns and scratches that litter his arms in pale tan and pink marks, and there’s a larger burn, as well as some dark lines of long scars, on his back. One side has a mark that can only be a knife blade.  _ Magnificent. _

“Your scars are exquisite,” Murdoc whispers. “It is rare to find someone whose wounds become things of beauty instead of ugly marks that mar their bearers.” It’s true, these scars, even the deepest ones, haven’t twisted or healed in a deformed way. “I wonder, will the ones I leave be the same?” His fingers trace over the gash on Angus’s arm, and then he steps back, through the doorway of the tack room. He finds what he was looking for in moments, hanging above a saddle on a hook in the wall. He steps back into the middle of the barn, then tosses the whip out to its full length and cracks it, a sound that reverberates through the barn rafters and makes Angus flinch violently. 

“You know, I’ve been wondering something, almost since the first day we met.” He watches the boy tremble, tensed and shivering, waiting for what he knows is coming. “I’m actually quite curious to know what it sounds like when you scream.” And he’s determined to find out by the end of today.


	5. Chapter 5

Jack curses when the wind gusts through the open window. He’s not really used to the cold weather, living in Texas where it barely gets cold at all, much less a blizzard like this. But for once, he ignores the cold. He’s more focused on finding Mac.

“Are you sure you don’t have any idea on how to find Murdoc?” Jack snaps. He’s angry and the only person to take it out on is Helman.

“No, I don’t know how to find him,” Helman says cooly, clearly unaffected by his anger.

“I won’t stop you from killing him, you know. He deserves it.”

Helman shrugs, “That won’t make his location magically appear in my head.”

“You don’t have to hold back any information about anything that could help us find him. I know how you feel, I understand the urge you feel to kill him.”

“Oh you do?”

“I mean he didn’t kill my wife or anything. But he almost killed Mac more times then he should have ever been able too. And now he has Mac and he’s doing who knows what to him.”

Jack glances over at Helman. He has a strange expression on his face. Jack frowns. _Maybe he’s not the best person to have a heart to heart conversation with._ Jack didn’t really mean to say anything about Mac, but he finds himself strangely starting to trust him. _It probably has something to do with the fact that we both want to kill Murdoc._

“Your friend is probably dead,” Helman finally says, “Dennis was never one to take things slow. In fact, he probably already dumped the body in a ditch somewhere.”

Jack slams on the brakes, turning his head to glare at Helman.

“Well the Murdoc I know has always been keen on taking his time and drawing things out. Otherwise we both woulda been dead a long time ago.”

Jack hates the fact that that statement is true. _Murdoc could have easily killed us several times, but he didn’t._ All because Murdoc wanted to play mind-games with Mac. And he’s well aware that Mac’s mind isn’t the only thing Murdoc is after. 

Helman raises his eyebrows, “What’s so special about _him_?”

Jack doesn’t know how to answer that question. He knew what made Mac special, his big heart and his genius improvising skills, but that wasn’t what interested Murdoc. Jack didn’t even want to think about why Murdoc was so interested in Mac and he had to pray that Murdoc hadn’t done anything like that to Mac. _I’m going to get him back and I’m going to put that psychopath in the ground. _

Helman must have read something on his face because he asks, “He really means a lot to you?” His voice is almost soft.

“Yeah. That kid is the best person I’ve ever met. There’s no one like him. He’s like...a son to me.” Jack inhales sharply. He’s believed that for a while now, but he’s never said it to Mac let alone anyone else. He regrets that now. _If I never see him again..._No he can’t think like that. Jack tries to blink away the tears in his eyes. He can’t afford to let Helman see him like this. Though it may already be a bit too late for that. He basically bared his heart for Helman to see.

“My wife was the best thing that happened to me. I was blind in love. I honestly should have expected Dennis to feel hurt. I knew he had...issues. But I didn’t expect him to kill her.”

“What was her name?” Jack asks tentatively. 

“Claire.”

“Claire,” Jack repeats, “You know he didn’t mean to kill her, he wanted to kill you.”

Helman raises his eyebrows again, “Are you defending him? Or is that supposed to make me feel better in some sort of way.”

Jack realizes his mistake and tries to backtrack, “No, no, of course not.”

“And he did mean to kill her. He doesn’t miss, I taught him myself.”

Jack knows he shouldn’t be surprised. Murdoc has a tendency to lie to them. It’s a miracle that even part of the story was true. Jack realizes that he has been sitting in the same spot for a few minutes, far too long. Jack curses again, he knew he already had a slim chance of catching up to Murdoc and now...he is afraid he’s lost Mac. Jack looks to the street and curses again, he hasn’t realized the snow had been piling up on the street, drifting around the wheels to the point that they’ll probably only spin uselessly. It looks like it’s going to be almost impossible to pass through. He gets out of the car and pulls Helman out too. Luckily the truck’s owner had kept a few shovels in the back, but Jack is losing hope. _It’s already been too long. And by the time we clear out the road..._But that doesn’t mean Jack is giving up. He grabs two shovels.

“Help me clear the road out.”

Helman raises his bound hands. _Oh yeah. I forgot about that._ Jack steps up to him and unties his hands. Helman rubs his wrists and accepts one of the shovels Jack hands to him. But Jack’s mistake is when he turns around. It’s a rookie mistake. _Never turn your back on the enemy._ The last thing Jack feels before he passes out is the bitter cold snow against his skin.


	6. Chapter 6

Murdoc smiles at the sight before him. Angus is shaking in fear, in anticipation of what’s coming next. He’s tense, trying to prepare himself as best as possible for the blow. Murdoc raises his arm, then freezes when he hears a noise coming from outside. He sets the whip down and pulls out his gun. He walks outside and points it at the intruders. He stops, frowning.

“Well this is a surprise,” he says, when he recognizes who it is. Helman and Dalton. Dalton is glaring at him and Murdoc is sure that if Dalton wasn’t tied up, he would already be dead. He also has a gag in his mouth. Murdoc’s not surprised.  _ He never shuts up. _

“Why are you here?” Murdoc asks, looking back at Helman.

“I thought you would appreciate this,” Helman says.

“Why? I have no use for Dalton, he justs runs his mouth, that’s all he’s good at. You should have just killed him.”

Dalton makes a noise behind the gag and when Murdoc looks at him, it looks like he’s trying to kill him with his eyes.

“I would have killed him, but Dalton was telling me all about your obsession with this Mac. And of course how this Mac is like a son to him.”

Murdoc’s eyebrows went up in surprise. He knew Angus and Dalton were like brothers, but he didn’t know MacGyver thought of Dalton like a father.  _ Oh this is going to be fun. _

Murdoc grabs Dalton’s arm and forces him inside, making him kneel in front of MacGyver. He smiles at Jack’s growl and Angus’ surprised gasp. He grabs a few more ropes and ties Dalton’s ankles together and then ties the rope around his ankles to the one around his wrist. It’s a bit excessive, but he’s not taking a risk.

“There, perfect. You’re just in time for the show Dalton. Starring your precious  _ son _ .”

Dalton says something muffled by the gag, but Murdoc can guess what he’s saying.

“No need for that kind of language. Just sit back and enjoy the  _ silent _ show.”

Murdoc grabs the whip again, noticing that Helman has also walked into the barn and taken a seat on a stool that was lying around. He looks towards Angus and basks in the terrified look on his face. Murdoc smiles, slowly circling him, dragging a finger along one of his scars.

“Now let’s hear that scream.”

Murdoc backs up a few steps and lashes him with the whip. He smiles at the choked back cry from Angus.  _ I always love breaking the stubborn ones. _

He lets the whip fall on Angus’ back over and over again. He’s not going to stop until he hears a scream, a proper one. Macgyver’s breathing has picked up. He’s crying out each time he’s hit, but it’s still not a scream. Finally, he’s not able to hold back his scream of pain any longer. It’s quite pleasing and Murdoc can’t resist the chance to hear it again. So he doesn’t stop. He doesn’t stop until MacGyver’s voice is almost gone and he can’t scream anymore. Murdoc smiles at the sounds of Angus’ gasps as he tries to catch his breath and the soft, almost silent sounds of him crying. 

Only then does he glance at Dalton. The man is thrashing in his bonds, snarling and frothing around the gag like a muzzled dog. He’s glaring at Murdoc, but the moment his eyes slip to the limp body hanging from the ceiling, his face softens. 

Murdoc walks around Angus and stops in front of him, watching him for a few minutes as tears run down his face. He uses the handle of the whip to lift his head and force MacGyver to meet his eyes. He smiles even wider at the pain he sees in those expressive eyes. And the fear, so much delicious fear. 

“Hmmm, the front side seems a little empty, don’t you think?”

Angus’ eyes widen and he starts shaking his head. Murdoc laughs, flicking the whip a few more time and enjoying the screams he hears again.

“There. Much better.”

Murdoc steps away, looking in the tack room cabinets until he finds what he’s looking for.  _ Looks like someone’s hidden habit is going to come in very handy for me. _ He puts it down on the table outside the room and lowers the rope holding Angus up, removing his cuffs from the hook once the pressure is off them. MacGyver collapses to the ground, lacking the energy to even sit up anymore. Murdoc pulls Mac’s Swiss Army knife out of his pocket, and MacGyver shudders. Murdoc opens it, running a gloved hand along the largest blade, then turns around. 

Murdoc walks up to Dalton, pulling his head back and putting the knife to his throat, ignoring Dalton’s noise of protest. Angus immediately looks up when he hears Dalton and his face goes pale.

“Get up,” Murdoc orders.

Angus obeys immediately, but it takes him some time to find the energy to stand up. He sways dangerously, taking a few steps to lean against the wall, leaving a bloody smear on the boards as he takes another step forward. He’s shivering and panting, struggling to stay upright.

“Grab a stool and sit in front of the table. Quickly this time.”

Angus obeys, still not very fast. His legs are shaking, and he almost falls on his face, stumbling through the straw. The waist of his pants is soaked in blood already.

“Good.”

Murdoc lets go of Dalton shoving him away, so that he falls on his side. He grabs another stool and sits behind MacGyver.

“We really have to do something about that back. We can’t have it getting infected now, can we?”

Angus immediately tenses up. His handcuffed hands clench onto the edge of the stool.

“Don’t move at all. And not a word from you. Otherwise…”

Murdoc leaves the threat at that. Better to let Angus’ imagination come up with something. He pours the whisky onto the rag he found and starts cleaning Angus’ back. He takes his time, running the cloth along each individual lash, stopping and listening to the screams and gasps of pain. Angus is holding onto the stool so tightly that Murdoc is surprised that he hasn’t left a mark. It takes time, plenty of time, before Murdoc is done with all the lashes, on Angus’ front and back. MacGyver is openly sobbing by now, his voice, gone from all the screaming he did.

“There, perfect.”

He grabs Angus by the arm and practically drags him back to the rope and reattaches the cuffs to the hook, pulling the rope so his toes are barely touching the ground. He ties the rope off.

“Sweet dreams, Angus.”


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, I 100% almost forgot to update this today (thanks N1ghtshade for reminding me) so sorry this is late...

Jack wakes up to a cold breeze on his face. It feels like someone’s throwing shards of ice at him.  _ Guess it’s a little better than having a bucket of water dumped on my head. _ But he doesn’t even remember falling asleep...wait. Helman. Murdoc. Mac. Snow. 

Jack’s head is pounding. He blinks, sitting up slightly. Or trying to. His hands are tied uncomfortably behind his back. 

“What the hell?” He kind of expected, after turning his back on Helman, that he would be dead. Or at least dumped and left to freeze in a ditch. But he’s in the passenger seat of the pickup truck, and Helman is driving.

“Well, well, you’ve finally woken up.” Helman says. “I was enjoying the peace and quiet.”

“What are you doing? Are you going to try and use me as bait to catch Murdoc?”

“On the contrary. I think of it more as a gift.” Helman says. 

“What?”

“Oh, you don’t think Dennis learned to tell those elaborate stories all on his own, do you?” Helman says. “I must admit, I didn’t expect him to tell you I had a  _ wife. _ But oh, it was such fun to play along, to listen to you bare your soul to someone, anyone. I think you’re the one who loves blindly, after all. And this ‘Mac’ is your weakness.” 

“And what’s all this about a gift?”

“Well, when Dennis asked me to help him get out of a little...tight spot, I thought I couldn’t pass up the chance to chalk up an IOU from  _ him. _ ” Helman shrugs. “And now, maybe I’ll make it two. Since Mac is your weakness, maybe you’re his too?”

“I’m going to kill you. Both of you.” Jack snarls.

“Oh, if you’re just going to threaten, I much preferred the silence.” Helman pulls over for a moment, takes a handkerchief from his pocket, and ties it into a gag. Jack thrashes around and tries to pull away, but confined in the seat of the truck, with his hands bound, there isn’t much he can do.

Not too many minutes later, Helman pulls over into a small lane that leads to a barn just vaguely visible through the snow. Jack isn’t sure why he chose this place, but then again, Helman taught Murdoc how to hide, so if this is a place he would choose, it stands to reason Murdoc would too.

The gate is closed, but Helman opens it, and drives through, closing it behind them

The truck bogs down in deep snow halfway down the lane to the barn. Helman shuts it off, climbs out, and pulls Jack out. Jack falls to his knees, before scrambling back upright with a muffled curse behind the gag. He can’t balance with his hands tied like this.

Helman walks up to the barn. Jack can see the black and white of a police car parked around the side of it, and he stumbles again, just a little, forgetting to watch where he’s putting his feet.  _ Murdoc is here. _

Helman knocks on the door, and Murdoc opens it, gun at the ready. Just as quickly, though, he lowers it. Jack doesn’t like being the third wheel in his and Helman’s conversation, or the fact that Murdoc would prefer him dead, but he isn’t paying as much attention to them as he is to the body swaying from the hay lift ropes in the middle of the barn. Mac has been strung up so his toes barely brush the floor, and his jacket and shirt are gone. There’s a thin line of red on his left arm, snaking in dried lines to his wrist, and now making its way down his chest, thanks to the way his arms are raised. His head is hanging, but he’s still breathing, at least. 

And then Jack is shoved to his knees in the straw and Murdoc picks up something long and thin. Jack flinches. He’s seen the damage an old-fashioned bullwhip can do.  _ When I was a kid tryin’ to be Indiana Jones, I hit myself more than a few times.  _ And one of the farmhands could cut a piece of paper, he had that much skill and control. The ends of those whips are as damaging as any knife. 

Murdoc lashes into Mac’s back, and Jack is the one who screams. Incoherent threats and curses from his forcibly closed mouth, pleas for Murdoc to take him instead, to leave Mac alone. None of it makes any impression at all. Murdoc seems to only have ears for Mac’s screams, which finally do come. Hoarse and choked and desperate. 

Jack curses again, and tugs helplessly at the ropes holding him in place. Helman seems as unaffected by what’s happening as Murdoc, or maybe even more so. Because Murdoc is smiling as if he gets a sick pleasure from watching Mac bleed and hearing him scream and sob. Helman is simply frowning, studying Murdoc like the man is a new species of bug.  _ Probably never seen him this invested in one of his targets.  _

Jack feels like sobbing himself when it’s all over. Except that it isn’t. Murdoc simply walks around to the front, and proceeds to leave more deep, bleeding lashes on Mac’s chest.  _ Stop, just stop, please. _

And then Murdoc stops, coiling the bloody whip and wiping it with his glove, watching all too fascinatedly as the blood drips down onto the straw. He digs around through a tack room until he finds something, carrying it out and setting it on a table that reminds Jack of the one in his family’s barn back home where they oil saddles and bridles and make repairs. He can’t see what it is, he’s turned the wrong way. 

Murdoc frees Mac’s handcuffs from the hay hook, And Mac collapses to the ground, panting and shivering in the straw. For the first time, Jack can see his back, and it’s so shredded and torn that he feels sick.  _ Oh kiddo. _

Murdoc pulls out a knife from his pocket, and Jack flinches.  _ Mac’s SAK.  _ He absolutely hates the thought of Murdoc torturing Mac with his own knife. He hates it even more, because this is the knife he just gave Mac  _ himself _ after their little Planet of the Apes incident.  _ Don’t do this. _

But Murdoc doesn’t go to Mac. Instead, he walks up to Jack, pulling his head back and laying the large blade of the knife against his throat. Jack doesn’t need to feel it to know the blade is razor sharp; Mac always takes good care of that knife and makes sure it’s in perfect condition, for whatever he needs. 

“Get up,” Murdoc snaps. Mac struggles weakly to his feet, swaying and leaning on the wall for support. He’s so pale, and his back, chest, and sides are striped with cuts and flowing trickles of blood. 

Jack growls.  _ Don’t you dare use me against him, you monster.  _ But there’s nothing he can do. Not while Murdoc can threaten his life, and do it in a way that will hurt Mac more than anything else. 

“Grab a stool and sit in front of that table.” Mac does it, slowly and painfully. Jack can see him shaking, vibrating really, probably a combination of pain and cold and fear. Murdoc could ask for anything, literally anything, and Jack knows Mac would do it.  _ To keep me alive, he’d do anything. _

Murdoc lets go of Jack and walks over to the table, picking up what Jack can now see is a bottle of whiskey.  _ Someone was sneaking a shot or two at the barn.  _ Murdoc pours some onto a rag and starts wiping it slowly over Mac’s back, his hands lingering too long on the lower back and Mac’s sides. By the time he makes his way around to the chest, Mac is sobbing again, tears dripping down his cheeks. Jack can’t tell if it’s all from the pain, or if it’s fear as Murdoc’s hands wander across his body. 

Finally it’s over, and Murdoc yanks Mac back to the hay hook, hauls him up again, and leaving him there. He steps outside with Helman, leaving Mac and Jack alone in the barn. Jack wants to comfort Mac, to be able to talk to him at least. It’s clear his kid is suffering, terrified, and miserable, and Jack can’t even tell him it’s going to be okay (not that that would be true) much less hold him (not that he could with the poor kid’s shredded back).

He settles for staying there on his knees, humming softly, an old song his mom used to use to sing him to sleep, and looking around the barn for anything he can use to get them out. Mac might be in trouble, but he’s not the only one who can find new ways to use old things. And Jack needs a plan. Fast. 


	8. Chapter 8

Mac wishes he could fall asleep. Or at the very least pass out. Because he just wants it to stop hurting. 

His back and chest feel like they’re on fire. There’s still alcohol in the cuts, and it burns and stings. The smell of the whiskey reminds him of Jack. But he can’t bear to look up at the man kneeling in the straw in front of him.

Jack is humming quietly, something Mac remembers him doing when the horses on the ranch are spooked or hurt. He knows Jack means it to calm him down. But the only thing he can think is that Jack is here, Jack isn’t safe. Murdoc could be cruel and kill him right here, with Mac unable to do anything but watch. 

He doesn’t dare move. His shoulders already ache, and he knows it will only get worse. And he can’t twist around too much with his back in the state it is.

_ If I could just get my hands free… _ But he can’t push himself up to do it. His toes are barely brushing the floor. And he’s too weak to try and swing himself up and get the cuffs to slide over the hook. 

And even if he could have managed that, where would he and Jack go? There’s nothing but snow and ice, and there are _ two _assassins between them and any vehicle they might be able to use. 

But he can’t stop his mind from planning out what he _ would _ do if he could. There’s a sharp blade hanging on the wall to the left, probably something from a lawnmower or a brush cutter, brought inside to be sharpened.

_ If I could get that off the wall... _He can’t, but Jack could. 

“Jack?” he whispers softly.

Jack looks up and says something Mac can’t hear through his gag. But he guesses it’s something comforting and reassuring. _ He always tries to make me feel better. _But he can’t imagine how anything could make this situation better. 

“Jack, it’s me Murdoc wants. You should get yourself free and go.”

Whatever he says sounds a lot like ‘not without you.’

“No, Jack, I’ll only slow you down. I can’t go out there, and Murdoc will never let us get close to the cars. You have to go and try to make it somewhere and get us help.” The thought of being alone with Murdoc terrifies him, but the thought of Jack being hurt is even worse. _ Murdoc knows that I’d do anything to keep Jack safe. That I’d agree to anything he asked for. _And he knows Jack knows that too.

“Please, you have to go. Jack. Please.” 

Something in his words must mean he’s serious, as serious as he can be. Because Jack looks from him to the blade on the wall, and begins to slowly move across the floor toward it. And then the door slams open, a gust of icy wind stings Mac’s bare chest, and Murdoc walks in with a cruel smile.

“I hope you’ve enjoyed your rest,” He says, walking up and taking Mac’s chin in his hand. “Because I have so much more fun planned for us.”

Jack is screaming into his gag. He’s thrashing and shouting, and Mac can see that his wrists are rubbed raw from the ropes. It’s better to focus on Jack than on the cold, hungry eyes in front of him. 

Murdoc chuckles. “It’s precious, how much you try to protect little Angus.” He turns to Jack, one hand still holding Mac’s head up. “And it seems you think he’s _ your _ child. Or so Helman tells me, and he knows better than to lie to _ me. _” 

Jack spits out something that they’re all probably just as well off not hearing. 

“But the truth is, Jack, he’s not yours. And he never will be. You can’t really appreciate what he is. You want to protect him from the world. But that’s not who he was made to be.” Murdoc chuckles. He steps out the door, and Mac smells smoke drifting in. _ Is he going to burn down the barn with us in it? _He struggles, thrashing against the handcuffs. 

Murdoc walks back inside with something in his hands. Something like a fire poker, but with a thick, glowing end. _ A branding iron. _

Mac’s seen this before, on the ranch. He visited with Jack once when they were getting the new stock ready to be turned out, and he watched the ranch hands branding them with the Dalton ranch mark. 

Murdoc holds up the sizzling metal. “I must admit, this was a...serendipitous find. I didn’t know that these owners shared the same last letter as my own name. Or, well, possibly it was a W. I’m not entirely sure. But fortunately for us, Angus, I’ve learned to improvise.”

Up until now, Mac wasn’t entirely sure what was happening. He blames it on the blood loss and pain messing with his head. But as Murdoc steps forward, he suddenly is all too aware of what Murdoc’s plan is. _ No, please, no. Don’t do this. _

“Let’s remind you and Dalton who you really belong to. Shall we?” There’s a hissing, a terrible, sickening smell of burned skin and muscle, and then there’s nothing but pain.

Mac thinks he might be screaming, but he’s not sure. He can’t hear anything over the agonizing roaring in his ears. When it slows, and he can take a breath, the combination of the smell from the burns and the thought of the ugly charred letter now permanently burned into the side of his neck make him sick. _ He branded me like a calf. Like I’m nothing more than a possession. _

Murdoc steps back, still smiling. “Maybe now, Angus, you’ll remember whose you really are?”

Mac can’t say anything. He lowers his head, flinching away from the pain of the brand, and sobs.


	9. Chapter 9

Murdoc smiles when he steps outside, leaning back against the wall of the barn. Helman looks at him, a little confused.

“Why didn’t you kill him?” Helman asks.

“Why would I kill him? I have so much time to make him suffer, I’m not going to end it that quickly.”

“Dalton was right, you have changed,” he says, continuing to frown at him.

Murdoc shook his head, “Not really. But Angus is special.”

“How? He seems like just another one of those pesky CIA agents.”

“Oh, he’s different. He’s smarter than those idiots. He can outsmart us when he puts his mind to it.”

“Shouldn’t that be a reason for you to kill him faster?”

“No no no, I’m playing the long game. Angus thinks he’s in control, but I’m the one holding all the cards. It’s so much fun to watch him think he trapped me and then realize that I’m the one who trapped him. I want to watch him break, for all the hope to go out of his eyes, for him to beg me to kill him. That’s when I’ll kill him. And anyways, I’ve never met someone so beautiful. There’s so many ways to break him.”

Helman looks unimpressed. “We’ll see how that goes. I’ll be leaving now, the storms let up. You owe me one, Dennis.”

Murdoc makes a face, “You know I hate that name.”

“I’ll be seeing you.”

Murdoc watches as Helman gets into the truck and drives off. Now it’s just him and Angus and Dalton.  _ Perfect. _

Jack really wishes he could speak to Mac. When Mac tells him to leave him behind, it tears up his heart. _ When will he understand how important he really is? _ But Jack knows what scares Mac almost as much as him getting hurt or killed. He knows Mac would do anything, if Murdoc threatened him and it was obvious Murdoc knows this too. And he knows exactly what Murdoc would ask from Mac. That is the only reason why he starts moving towards the blade.  _ Maybe if I get myself free, I can get Mac free too. _

But he is stopped by Murdoc suddenly entering the barn again. He starts screaming curses at Murdoc when he starts threatening Mac, ignoring the pain in his wrists from how he’s struggling against the ropes. And when Murdoc starts saying that Mac is his, Jack struggles even more.  _ He has no right to say that. _

Jack frowns when Murdoc steps outside.  _ Is something...burning? _ It seems Mac also smells it, because he starts struggling against the handcuffs.  _ What’s happening? _

When Murdoc walks back inside with the branding iron, Jack understands what he’s going to do.  _ No, no, no.  _ Jack’s screams and begs against the gag, but Murdoc ignores him. He needs to stop this, but he can’t. He can’t do a thing to help Mac. He looks at Mac, who looks confused.  _ He doesn’t know. _ Jack can’t tell if that’s better or worse for Mac. He watches as Mac’s eyes widen and he starts shaking his head.

“Let’s remind you and Dalton who you really belong to. Shall we?” he hears Murdoc say and he starts begging with Murdoc again.  _ Please, please don’t do this. _ Jack can’t bear watching when Murdoc presses the branding iron against Mac’s neck. He closes his eyes, but he can’t block out the agonizing scream coming from Mac or the smell of burnt flesh. 

It seems like forever before the scream quiets down to a whimper and Jack opens his eyes. Mac is looking at the burn and Jack can see the pure devastation in his eyes. He watches as Mac hangs his head and starts sobbing. Tears start running down his face as well and he yearns to hold Mac and comfort him. But he can’t. And nothing he could say would make this better.


	10. Chapter 10

Mac takes a shaky breath, cringing when the movement makes his torn back and the brand on his neck flare with pain. He can’t move without something aching, and he’s not going to be able to do anything about it.

Murdoc walks over to the door and sets the branding iron outside in the snow again. At least, Mac hopes it’s in the snow, not in whatever fire he lit out there. Apparently Murdoc is more resourceful than his struggle with that can of beans would have indicated. _ Was that just an act? To make me think he was less capable than he really is, so I’d let my guard down? _

It doesn’t really matter anyways. The fact is, he did let his guard down, and Murdoc did get the upper hand, at least for now. 

Murdoc walks back over, stopping briefly to tighten the ropes around Jack’s wrists and legs. Jack snarls and shouts at him through the gag, but Murdoc only smiles. He stands up and walks leisurely over to Mac, reaching up toward the brand. 

_ This is going to hurt. _ Mac braces himself for the pain of fingers digging into the burned skin, but instead, there’s a brush of slight touches over the mark. It still hurts, but not in the blinding way Mac was afraid of. 

“It looks even better than I’d hoped for. Of course, this is before the scarring, but still I think when it heals, it will be...quite nice.” 

Mac doesn’t have the energy or the breath to argue, and he’s not sure what Murdoc will do if he does. He just glares. 

“You know, I wish I’d done this when I had the chance before. I so wanted to leave a mark on you the last time I had you in my hands. But I was afraid I might get carried away. And then the rest of my plan would have fallen apart. So…” he frowns. “Then again, I think this is arguably so much better than it would have been if I’d done it with a knife.”

Jack shouts something else Mac can’t understand. 

Murdoc turns to him. “I’m sure you can’t appreciate my artist’s eye for this sort of thing. But I personally think it’s a masterpiece.” He trails his fingers down the streaks of blood still sluggishly dripping from a few of the whip slashes on Mac’s chest. “Scars are one of the most fascinating things in the world. All the stories they tell.” His hand rests over the bullet wound scar on Mac’s chest. “Someone wanted to see poor little Angus dead. And very nearly succeeded. Oh, I would have loved to see that. What happened, Dalton, did you let him out of your sight too long? Is that why you’re so protective of him now?”

Jack snarls and thrashes even harder. Mac just breathes. 

“Oh, and let’s not forget that lovely little mark on your leg. I haven’t see that one up close and personal yet, but there’s still time. How did that happen, I wonder?” Mac freezes. _ I got that scar weeks ago. The scissors, the adrenaline to fight the VX gas. How did he see that? _ It would have been eerie enough if Murdoc had seen it the last time he kidnapped Mac, if he’d been enough of a creep to do something that sick. But this... _ How does he know? _

“You know, you really ought to invest in some better curtains. Or at the very least, use the ones you have properly. Or did you take them down and make something out of them? Or set them on fire?” Murdoc’s voice is taunting, that laugh in it something more cutting than a knife or a whip. “Because you seem to be in the habit of leaving a quite enjoyable view for anyone who knows where to look.”

Mac shudders. Those windows, the ones that look into his room off the deck, are at the back of the house, where the land drops off underneath it. Murdoc would have had to work hard, on purpose, to get back there, and risk being seen when he did. _ This is sick. How long has he been watching me? _

“The best part about coming to Los Angeles for jobs was stopping by your house,” Murdoc continues. “You know, when I’m done here, maybe I’ll go pay a visit to your all too friendly roommate.” Mac shudders. 

“No, no.” Murdoc can threaten any of them, and he knows it will be enough to push Mac over the edge. “It’s not any of them you want, it’s me.”

“Good to see you’ve noticed.” Murdoc ignores Jack’s angry growls and leans in, cupping a hand under Mac’s chin and pulling his head up. “I wonder, what would you do to guarantee their safety?”

Mac shivers. He doesn’t want to answer that. Because telling the truth would be a terrible idea, but lying will probably make Murdoc decide to prove it by holding Jack at the point of a knife. 

“Well, let’s give you some time to think about that, shall we?” Murdoc says. “I’d like to be well-rested when I get your answer, and I’m sure you would be too.” He runs one hand through Mac’s sweaty hair. “Until tomorrow, Angus.”


	11. Chapter 11

Jack sighs in relief when Murdoc finally leaves. He can’t even imagine how Mac must be feeling right now, and his heart shatters when he hears the sound of soft sobs coming from Mac. He wants to comfort Mac, but he can’t, not with the gag around his face.  _ If only I could get it off… _

Jack sighs again. Murdoc knows exactly how to hurt Mac and he is taking full advantage of that. And when he mentioned watching Mac from his window...there is no way he is going to leave Murdoc alive after this. He is going to do anything it takes to keep Mac safe. But he’s helpless right now. He can’t do anything to help Mac. His head snaps up when he hears Mac’s hoarse, almost silent voice.

“Jack? Are you okay?”

Jack could’ve laughed if it hadn’t been for the situation.  _ After everything he went through, he’s still only worried about me? _

“I’m fine,” Jack says through the gag, his voice is muffled, but he knows Mac understands him. He looks toward Mac again, who’s looking at him. Even from this distance, he can see the pure fear on Mac’s face and the glint from the streak of tears running down his face.  _ Oh kid, I’m gonna get you out of this, I promise. _

He tugs on his restraints again, trying to see if there’s a weak point. There isn’t. He curses, Murdoc is thorough, tying him up to a nearby post so he couldn’t even move around. But, there’s some wood sticking out of the post, maybe sharp enough to cut the ropes. He has to go slow and be extremely careful, so he doesn’t break off the loose piece. He starts trying to cut the rope around his wrists. The angle is extremely uncomfortable, but Jack doesn’t care. He needs to get Mac out of here. Mac must notice he’s up to something because he falls silent, except for the occasional sob.  _ He must be in too much pain to sleep, but not enough to pass out. _ Jack doesn’t know how long it takes for the ropes to finally snap, but it feels like hours. He quickly unties himself and pulls off the gag, tossing it aside. He runs up to Mac, his hands hovering near him, not knowing exactly where to touch.

“Jack? How did you get free?”

“It doesn’t matter. Let’s get you out of here.” He lowers Mac gently and pulls the handcuffs off the hook. He examines the handcuffs and when he can’t figure out a way to unlock them, he lets it go.  _ We’ll deal with it later. _

Mac is still shaking in fear. His eyes are terrified.

“Hey, hey, it’s okay. I got you, we’re going to leave and Murdoc won’t ever be able to touch you again.”

“Jack-”

“You seem a bit overconfident about that Dalton.”

And that’s the last thing he hears before everything goes black…


	12. Chapter 12

Mac should have known this wasn’t going to work. But he’d still let himself hope. So when he sees Murdoc enter, it feels so much worse than if he’d never let himself believe Jack could get them out.

And when Murdoc knocks Jack to the floor, he flinches, pulling away even as his back and chest ache. He barely makes it a step before he falls to the ground as well, the pain is too much.  _ What is he going to do now that he’s caught us? How is he going to punish us for trying to get away? _ His mind is finding more and more horrible possibilities, and he wants it to stop, he wants to stop imagining anything like that, but he can’t help it.

Murdoc leans down over Jack’s limp body, sprawled in the hay. “Now, you know, it’s bad manners to leave without telling your host. I can see Dalton doing it, he’s so uncouth, but you, Angus...I thought you would know better.” 

He hauls Mac back to his feet, ignoring Mac’s feeble struggles to pull away from him. “Come here, now, what are you worried about? I’m not going to hurt you...this time.” He hangs Mac’s cuffs back on the hay hook. When he turns Jack over, Mac can see a trickle of blood on the side of his head where Murdoc hit him.  _ Please Jack, please be okay. _ He can see the man’s chest rising and falling slightly.

“Now I think maybe I should take more precautions to make sure neither of you leave before we’re finished here. Maybe I should just...oh, I don’t know. I think maybe we should see how long it takes him to bleed out if I…” Murdoc opens Mac’s knife and holds the blade to Jack’s wrist. “Here? Or no, maybe the neck would be better...hmm. Let’s see...should we draw straws?” He picks up a handful of pieces from the floor. “I think that should make this more interesting. I’ll name a location, you draw one of these pieces. When you get to the short one, that’s where I’ll cut. Now I’ll admit, it’s not as satisfying to see his blood as yours, but…”

Mac shakes his head, his voice is gone from screaming, but he wants to plead with Murdoc to stop. He can’t have any part of getting Jack hurt, or killed. _ But it’s already my fault. If Murdoc hadn’t been able to catch me, Jack would never have had to come after me. And if Jack hadn’t been so determined to save me, he could have gotten away.  _ The fact that Jack is hurt at all is Mac’s fault. 

“Let’s see. Leg, stomach, throat, wrist...what else shall we say? Lung? I do love a good stab to the lung, and maybe Dalton will be lucky, and it won’t be fatal…”

Mac shakes his head harder.  _ Please, don’t hurt him. I’ll do anything, anything! _ If he could just talk, if he could say that, he’s sure Murdoc would change his mind.  _ He wants me more than he wants to hurt Jack. _ He knows Jack would be furious when he found out, and there’s no way he wouldn’t know, because Murdoc would be all too happy to tell him all about it, but better an angry and alive Jack than him bleeding out in the straw. 

“Please.” it’s just a whisper, the only thing he can get past his raw throat. “Please don’t.”

“And why not?” Murdoc asks. “Dalton is only an annoyance. He holds you back. You know that. He can’t keep up with your intellect; so why would you want him to be your partner? Or is he your replacement for that father you’re so desperate to find? Is that it, Angus?” He turns around, still holding the knife. “Have you replaced dear old Dad with Jack Dalton? I already know he thinks of you as a son. Is it possible you’ve noticed? And that you like it?” He smiles evilly. “Poor little Angus, all alone, unwanted. It makes sense you’d latch onto anyone who showed you the slightest bit of affection. But you know, he can’t protect you any more than your dad can. He can’t save you from me.” He smiles. “But you can save him. All you have to do is...whatever I ask.”

Mac can’t force himself to answer. But he does nod.  _ If Jack dies, what do I have left? _


	13. Chapter 13

Jack groans when his senses come back online. He slowly opens his eyes, looking around. He’s tied back up, exactly like before. His head is pounding and he feels a little dizzy.  _ What happened? Right, we almost escaped. _ Murdoc must have knocked him out before he could go any further. And based on how his head feels, he likely has a concussion.  _ Maybe I shouldn’t’ve gotten hit on the head twice. _

“Finally decided to join the party Dalton?” Murdoc asks.

Jack groans at the sudden loud noise.

“Hmmm perhaps I hit you a bit too hard. Oh well,” Murdoc says shrugging.

Jack doesn’t reply, instead looking towards Mac. He’s tied up exactly like before and Jack can see how scared and...guilty he’s looking. 

“Enjoyed your nap Dalton? I was thinking about making it a bit more...permanent, but Angus made me change my mind,” Murdoc says with a twisted smile, “Amazing what one can do with the right leverage.”

Jack looks at Mac with horror.  _ He didn’t… _

“What are you talking about?” Jack snaps. He’s a bit surprised that Murdoc didn’t gag him again, but he’s not complaining.  _ Maybe I can convince him to hurt me instead of Mac. _ It’s doubtful, but it doesn’t stop him from hoping.

“That’s between me and Angus. Don’t go digging in other people’s business, Dalton. It’s not polite.”

“I don’t give a damn what’s polite and what isn’t,” Jack shouts, struggling against the ropes.

“No need to be so angry Dalton. I haven’t touched your precious child, if that’s what you’re worried about. But it is time for your punishment now.”

Mac tenses up and Jack understands why.  _ He’s gonna hurt Mac. To get to me for trying to escape. _

“You know, you aren’t as stupid as you pretend to be. You know exactly what’s going to happen here. And you can’t do anything to stop it.”

Jack growls, but doesn’t say anything. He knows it’s true, he can’t do anything to stop Murdoc from hurting Mac. Murdoc steps away from Mac and goes into the tack room. _ What could he possibly be looking for in there? _ He comes out with two horse buckets and steps outside.  _ What does he need those for? _ Murdoc takes a while to come back and that time is spent in silence. Jack wants to talk to Mac, but Mac seems so exhausted that he can barely lift his head.  _ Better to just let him rest as much as he can. _

Murdoc walks back inside and sets down the buckets in front of him. He looks inside and they’ve been packed with snow, some of which has started slightly melting.

“What am I supposed to do with that?” Jack asks, raising his eyebrows.

“Oh, you don’t need to do a thing besides watch. I was just showing you what was inside.”

Murdoc sets the buckets down in front of Mac, who eyes them in confusion. He grabs some rope and ties each of Mac’s ankles to a bucket and the realization suddenly comes to Jack. He knows exactly what Murdoc is about to do.

“Don’t,” he says, “Don’t do this.”

He locks eyes with Mac who still doesn’t seem to understand what’s happening.  _ It’s most likely the blood loss. _

“I never thought I’d live to see the day where Jack Dalton would beg,” Murdoc says with his twisted smile.

“Please, please don’t hurt him, you can hurt me instead. I’m the one who tried to escape, he didn’t even do anything.”

“You don’t seem to understand Dalton. I’m hurting him because I want to. I have no desire to hurt you, it would be no fun. Angus is the only reason you’re alive anyways. So shut your mouth, you’re just making it worse for him. Or don’t, I don’t mind hurting him more.”

With that, Murdoc turns around, facing Mac. He lifts up Mac’s chin, forcing him to meet Murdoc’s eyes. 

“Not one drop spilled,” he says, “You know what I’ll do otherwise.”

Mac’s eyes widen and he nods quickly. Murdoc smiles at him.

“Good.”

Murdoc steps back to where he had tied the rope off and unties it, pulling Mac up higher until he’s hanging just by his wrists and the buckets are swinging under him. Murdoc ties up the rope and admires his work. Jack can hear how Mac’s breaths have quickened.  _ He’s afraid of heights. And the pain isn’t helping. _

“Let’s see how long Angus lasts, shall we?”


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is late because I (JustAnotherWriter) had my car break down in a parking lot last night, had to get it towed, and thus spent most of my evening pretty stressed and preoccupied...hopefully you all enjoy this anyway!

Jack sighs in relief when Murdoc finally lets Mac down. He’s surprised that Mac’s shoulders haven’t dislocated yet, but he’s not complaining. The less pain Mac is in, the better. 

But releasing the weight off of Mac’s arms is still painful, judging from the look of agony on his face.  _ The blood flow must be returning to his arms. If he was up there for longer… _

Murdoc seems to be having similar thoughts because he just stands there, observing Mac, smiling every time Mac whimpers in pain.

Jack stays still, trying not to anger Murdoc into doing anything else to Mac. But it’s hard not to scream at Murdoc at the sight of Mac’s trembling, bloody body on the ground.

It seems like forever before Murdoc speaks, “I hope you learned your lesson, Dalton.”

Jack glares at Murdoc, but doesn’t respond to the bait. He can see the look in Murdoc’s eyes,  _ Just test me, Dalton, and see what I do. _

Murdoc looks at him for a few seconds before turning back to Mac, “I’m surprised your shoulders haven’t dislocated yet, we’ll have to do something about that…”

“No!” Jack shouts, “Don’t hurt him, hurt me instead.”

Murdoc ignores him, pulling Mac onto his feet and reattaching the handcuffs to the hook.

“ _ Please,  _ don’t hurt him. You’ll kill him...”

He continues pleading with Murdoc and Mac is looking at him, shaking his head. He can tell what Mac is thinking,  _ I’m fine, Jack. I can take it. _

“See, Dalton? Angus doesn’t want me to stop and I can’t possibly refuse his requests. Now shut up, before I come up with something worse.”

Jack cuts himself off and hangs his head, trying to keep his sobs quiet. He failed, he couldn’t keep Mac safe, despite promising that to Mac several times.

“As satisfying as it is to hear you crying, Dalton, I prefer Angus’ sobs so SHUT UP. Do I need to gag you again?

Jack manages to to stop crying, he isn’t helping things right now. The last thing he needs is to make Murdoc angry. Murdoc acting out of amusement is bad enough, he doesn’t want to see Murdoc angry.

“Good,” Murdoc says, then continues working on the rope that he uses to pull Mac up.

Jack stares, trying to make sense of what Murdoc is doing. But his head is too foggy from the concussion and his vision is a bit blurred.

After some time, Murdoc seems satisfied with what he’s done and he pulls on the rope, slowly bringing Mac up again. Mac is shaking his head, it seems he has figured out what Murdoc’s doing.

And that plan becomes clear to Jack the second before Murdoc lets go of the rope and lets Mac drop.

The terrified cry Mac makes as he plunges toward the ground stops Jack’s heart. He watches helplessly, cringing at the thought of that sound being cut short with the snap of a bone. But there’s nothing but a creak of wood, a hiss of rope, and a gasped sob.

Jack looks up. Murdoc has tied the rope off to keep it from letting Mac hit the ground, but the motion of the sudden stop has visibly dislocated one of Mac’s shoulders. Mac is sobbing, a small broken gasping sound. He’s shivering uncontrollably, and while most of his body is coated in drying blood, what skin Jack can see looks almost blue.  _ Murdoc’s going to kill him. _ If the blood loss and hypothermia don’t do it, the shock of pain might. Mac can’t take much more of this.

But Murdoc just hauls him back up again. It looks like this time, Mac’s gotten the idea of what’s going to happen. Jack watches him trying to brace himself for the jarring stop, but with one arm as good as useless, he really can’t do much. Jack winces when Mac’s other shoulder dislocates with an audible pop. 

Murdoc smiles, releasing the rope all the way and letting Mac tumble to the ground. He lays there unmoving in the loose straw, his body trembling with sobs and shivers. Jack wants to comfort him, but instead, Murdoc is leaning down over him, pulling out a long, wicked-looking knife. Jack wonders if he got more creepy assassin supplies from Helman. 

Murdoc bends down in front of Mac, clearly blocking Jack’s view on purpose. He listens as carefully as he can, and besides Mac’s shuddering breaths, he can’t hear anything. No awful wet sound of a blade being rammed into skin and muscle. Just...a soft tearing sound. Like cloth. 

When Murdoc stands up, Jack chokes, shaking with helpless fury. Murdoc has cut off the rest of Mac’s clothing, and Mac is curled up shivering even harder, obviously trying to protect himself the best he can. 

Murdoc pulls off one glove and crouches down to run a hand down Mac’s side and leg, smiling evilly when Mac whimpers and pulls away from his touch. With his shoulders dislocated, he can’t even reach up to push Murdoc’s hands away, and he’s keeping his legs tucked up to cover himself the best he can. Jack cringes, wanting to scream and curse but terrified of what Murdoc will do to punish him. 

“Oh, you’re just as beautiful up close as you are when I was watching through your window,” Murdoc says, and his voice has gone from cold and menacing to an even more terrifying hungry growl. “Such soft skin, such a perfect body.” Jack wants to be sick. How dare this creep talk about Mac that way?  _ I’m going to kill him. Slowly and painfully. _

Mac sniffs and then sobs, Jack doesn’t know how the kid has any tears  _ left _ after what happened. But this...This isn’t just cruel. It’s demented and twisted and everything Jack has been afraid of since he saw the way Murdoc looked at Mac in that junkyard.  _ He’s going to do this, and he’s going to make me watch. _ Jack tugs at the restraints holding his own hands.  _ I don’t care if Murdoc does kill me. I can’t just sit here and let him do that to Mac. I can’t. _ He can feel blood running down his wrists, even though his hands have long ago lost feeling from a combination of the tight bonds and the cold.  _ Mac is going to freeze. _

He can’t believe this is happening. He’s going to wake up, and they’ll be home. There will be no Fletcher, no Murdoc, no barn and no frightened, naked freezing Mac shivering on the floor while Murdoc stares at him with that sick hungry smile. 

_ Please, don’t touch him. Get away from him. _ Jack will plead or scream or beg or cry or do anything to make this stop. But he knows that’s not what Murdoc wants. Murdoc wants Mac.


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: This chapter contains more non-con touching, but it doesn't and won't go any further than that

Murdoc smiles as he runs his hands over Angus’ naked, shivering body. It’s enjoyable to watch his shiver and flinch away from his touch. And his sobs...Murdoc never exactly enjoyed listening to someone cry and plead for their lives, but Angus is a special case. His sobs are music to Murdoc’s ears.

He’s created a masterpiece and now he has all the time in the world to enjoy him. But the bluish tint of Angus’s skin is concerning. He doesn't want to wait for Angus to warm up a bit, but he can’t have him die. So he gets up, ignoring how Dalton is tugging on the ropes, and grabs a blanket from the tack room. 

He lays it on top of Angus’ curled up form and smiles. He might not have to wait so long for Angus to warm up. He rubs his hands together to warm them, then continues running his hands over Angus’ body.

“Don’t worry darling, I’m just trying to keep you warm.”

“You bastard-” Dalton starts saying, but Murdoc cuts him off.

“I just want silence from you, Dalton. Or I’ll let him freeze.”

Dalton falls silent and Murdoc smiles. He smiles even more when he notices how Angus is now leaning into the warmth of his touch, instead of flinching away.

He cups one hand around Angus’ face and Angus leans into the touch.

“S-so c-c-cold,” he manages to say.

“I know dear, I’m trying to warm you up. Then we can continue the fun,” Murdoc says in an almost gentle voice.

“J-Jack?”

Murdoc looks down at Angus’ unseeing eyes. He grabs some of his hair and turns his head so they lock eyes. Angus’ eyes widen in recognition and Murdoc can see him trying to force himself away from his touch, but failing. 

“It’s someone better, darling. Don’t worry, I’ll have you warmed up in no time.”

Angus tries to look around, clearly searching for Dalton, now that he’s a little more alert. But his mind is still obviously confused from the blood loss and the hypothermia.  _ Maybe I should move Dalton to the car _ . It would be a perfect punishment for Dalton as well, not being able to see what he’s doing to Angus.

“Jack. Where’s Jack?”

Murdoc glares at Dalton before he can answer. He pulls out his gun and lays it down on the straw, facing towards Dalton. He sees the man swallow as he understands the message Murdoc’s sending.

“I’m sorry dear. He’s gone, he left you. He decided he didn’t want you anymore after you were so weak.”

“No, no,”

“It’s true. I’m sorry he hurt you, but you still have me. I’ll  _ always _ be with you, Angus.”


	16. Chapter 16

Jack shakes in helpless anger while Murdoc lies to Mac.  _ I want to tell him I’m here. I want to reassure him. But if I open my mouth, Murdoc is going to shoot me. _ He’s working a rusty scissor blade he found on the floor over the ropes on his hands, but the blade is so dull he knows it’s almost useless. Still, he can’t just sit here and do nothing while Murdoc...the man’s hands are all over Mac, and Jack wishes he could cut them off for this.  _ Don’t touch him. Don’t you dare touch him. _

He can feel the blood pounding in his head, a heavy thudding like helicopter rotors. Except...unless his emotions are strong enough to shake the ground, those  _ are  _ incoming choppers.  _ Please, please, let Phoenix have found us. _

Murdoc looks up, and then smiles slightly. “Well, well, well, Angus, it looks like playtime is over, for now at least. But this isn’t the end. Oh, no. I’ll be seeing you.” 

And then he’s gone, out the barn’s side door into the white landscape beyond it. Jack hopes the rescue team catches him, but he already knows they won’t. This is Murdoc. He won’t be caught unless he wants to be. 

The barn door slams open, and Jack turns around to see Riley, Bozer, and Matty in the doorway, all of them with guns. It’s strange, because they’re usually not the fighters, that’s Jack’s job. But all of them know better than to underestimate Murdoc. 

“Jack!” Riley shouts. 

“Murdoc’s not here!” Jack shouts. “But you have to get Mac. He’s hurt, and it’s bad.”

Riley and Bozer hurry toward Mac, as do the medics who entered behind them. Matty cuts Jack’s hands free with more gentleness than he would have expected from her. The moment he’s free, he rushes over to Mac’s side.

Mac is still huddled in the straw, the old horse blanket pulled over him, as the medical team tries to assess the damage. His cold blue fingers are clenched in the cloth, fighting weakly when the medics try to pull it away to see the extent of the wounds on his back and chest. 

Jack leans down beside Mac, wrapping his own only slightly warmer hands around the kid’s fingers. “Mac, it’s okay, they have to help you. No one’s gonna hurt you anymore.”

“Please, don’t.” Mac’s voice is trembling and almost too faint to hear. “No, please.”

“We’re not going to hurt you. It’s just me, it’s Jack.” Slowly, Mac’s finger release the blanket, curling into Jack’s hand instead. But the second the medical team pulls away the cloth, Mac curls up tighter, starting to sob.

“Hey!” Jack snaps. He knows these guys are just doing their job, checking Mac over for injury that they couldn’t see, anything the blanket hid. But Mac is already scared, and cold, and Jack can see both Bozer and Riley turning away, and it looks like Bozer’s stifling a sob at the sight of Mac’s flayed back. “He’s half-frozen, we gotta keep him covered up.” 

“Is there any injury that could cause internal bleeding?” One of the medics asks. “If there is, we have to know now.” 

Jack frowns.  _ Murdoc shot him, whipped him, branded him, and dislocated his shoulders. But I don’t think any of that would cause that kind of damage. Although I’m not sure what happened to him before Helman brought me here. _

“I don’t think so.” Jack shakes his head. “But he’s lost a lot of blood, and he’s hypothermic as well.”

“I can see that, sir.” Jack wants to snarl at the clinical tone of voice. “We’re going to try and load him into the medevac chopper now. You can fly with him if you’d like.” Jack nods.

When the medical team finally lifts Mac, it looks like the pain from his injuries hits in a wave. His muscles tighten and Jack hears a soft whimper of pain before Mac apparently passes out, his eyes closing completely and his head falling limply to one side. The side that exposes the raw brand Murdoc burned into his neck.

Jack flinches at the sight, but his reaction is nothing compared to the rest of the team. Bozer chokes, Riley begins to cry, and even Matty goes pale. Jack feels tears burning his own eyes as he helps the medical team cover Mac with a thermal blanket that hopefully won’t stick to his wounds, and walks with them toward the medevac chopper. He reaches out to take Mac’s cold fingers in his own.  _ Come on, kid, you’re gonna be just fine. You’re a fighter. Don’t let Murdoc win, come on Mac. _

As if somehow his silent pleas got through to the kid, Mac’s fingers twitch and tighten around Jack’s, and Jack breathes a tiny sigh of relief. Maybe it really is going to be okay...


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone! Sorry it's been so long, we were quite busy with the holidays and some other projects! But we're hoping to return to our usual weekly posting schedule now that we have more time to work on our project!

_ “If you’d stop struggling, Angus, this could be fun for both of us.” Murdoc’s voice is sickly sweet, and Mac shivers, curling up tighter. He’s so cold, he wants Murdoc to go away and leave him alone and let him die. _

_ Jack left. Murdoc said so, but Mac didn’t believe it until he looked up and Jack wasn’t there. He must have gotten fed up with how pathetic Mac is, how helpless he is to save himself. Or maybe Murdoc killed him and lied. Either way, Jack is gone, because if he wasn’t he’d be right there shouting at Murdoc to stop this, fighting to get free. Mac is alone, trapped with Murdoc, defenseless against whatever happens now. _

_ “Why don’t you just give in and accept what you are?” Murdoc asks, sliding a hand down Mac’s side to his leg. “Your team doesn’t want you, Jack doesn’t want you, your own father didn’t want you. I’m the only one who does. I thought you wanted somewhere to belong, Angus.” _

_ “I don’t want to be your pet,” Mac chokes out. He can barely push the words out of his sore, raw throat. He hurts all over and he wants it to stop. His back and chest are on fire and his brand feels like the hot iron is still pressed against it. Murdoc can’t be serious, he can’t be planning to do more right now. Mac can’t bear it. _

_ Murdoc shakes his head, clicking his tongue. He rests a hand on Mac’s shoulder, starting to roll him over… _

Mac sits upright with a start, gasping. “Let go! Stop touching me! Get away from me!”

“Easy, bud, easy. It’s just me.” Jack’s soft Texas accent is reassuring. “You sounded like you were havin’ a rough time there.”

Mac just nods, still panting and shivering from the fear in the nightmare. He clutches the tangled blankets tightly around him, trying to forget the feelings of being vulnerable and exposed under Murdoc’s hands. “I should be better,” he whispers. “I’m sorry.”

“Mac, you got nothin’ to be sorry for,” Jack says gently. “I want to put that monster in the ground, what he did was nothing short of horrible. You’re allowed to have nightmares.”

“But it’s been weeks. I’ve been cleared by medical, all the physical injuries are healing.” Mac knows how he sounds, like a child whining about not being able to do what they want. He knows that the nightmares and trauma will take time to fade. But he wants them gone now. He can’t sleep through the night, he can’t change clothes or shower without thinking of Murdoc’s hands all over him. He can barely eat, and Jack has to stay here and watch over him instead of them doing their jobs. He feels useless and helpless. “I’ve been tortured before, I should be over this.” He doesn’t mention that no one else has been as twisted as Murdoc. Physical pain he’s used to. What Murdoc wants to do to him terrifies him. 

“Mac, you take as long as you have to to recover, it’s okay.”

But nothing is okay while Murdoc is still out there. Still waiting. 

The first text came the day after Mac was released from Phoenix medical. A gloating “looks like my masterpiece is turning out beautifully”, and a picture clearly taken that day showing the healing brand on Mac’s neck. 

Mac showed the text to Jack after it came. He couldn’t not tell him something was wrong. He didn’t let Jack see the picture, though.  _ He doesn’t need to worry more. _

Jack had insisted that Mac would be much safer at his apartment than at Mac’s house, especially since Murdoc has broken in there before. As far as they know, he doesn’t know where Jack lives. But Mac is still terrified that he’s going to wake up to Murdoc’s sadistic smile as the man bends over him, with Jack dead on the floor behind him. 

The texts have continued, sometimes with pictures, sometimes not. Sometimes they’re snippets of song lyrics (Jack almost shattered the phone the day Murdoc sent ‘why can’t you see, you belong with me’) and other cruel, taunting jabs. Sometimes they’re promises. Sick, twisted plans that make their way into Mac’s nightmares. And no matter how many times they block the texts, ask Riley to trace the messages, even when Riley changed Mac’s phone number entirely, the messages have continued. Mac hasn’t showed Jack the messages that came after the number change. He doesn’t want him to worry more about something that’s clearly well beyond their control. Jack has enough of his own nightmares to deal with already. 

Mac shivers at the thought, and at the remaining feeling of cold from the nightmare, and leans against Jack, letting his warmth start to push away the fear. But he knows that if Murdoc finds them, Jack will do whatever it takes to protect Mac, even if it gets him killed. And that’s the worst nightmare of all. 

* * *

Jack seems to notice Mac’s growing tension and brings his arms around him, not saying anything, just letting his presence reassure him. They sit there for some time, letting Mac catch his breath and shake off the last of his fear from the nightmare. There is some lingering fear remaining from the fact that Mac  _ knows _ that there is a message waiting for him on his phone.

“Hey kid, what’s wrong?”

Mac doesn’t say anything, just turning his head to bury his face into Jack’s shoulder. Jack brings a hand up to the back of his neck, avoiding the still healing burn. Mac inhales deeply, letting Jack’s smell calm him. Jack doesn’t move, letting Mac relax under his hand. 

Mac doesn’t realize he’s half asleep in Jack’s half-embrace until Jack’s phone buzzes, causing him to jump.

“Sorry ‘bout that,” Jack says, “I should’a left my phone outside.”

“No it’s fine,” Mac says, “We should get up anyways.”

Jack moves away from him and Mac almost whines at the loss of contact, but he holds himself back.  _ You need to stop being so clingy. Jack’s going to get tired of you. _

So Mac takes his time getting ready, to give Jack enough time away from him. When he walks into the living room, he sees that Jack has made breakfast for him. He smiles, sitting down slowly so his injuries are not aggravated. He’s mostly healed by now, but his back still aches and turning his head in certain ways feels like the iron is burning his skin all over again. Jack seems to notice this and sets down his pain meds next to his plate. Mac doesn’t protest, just swallowing the meds with a small sip of water.

“You okay, kid?” Jack suddenly asks.

“I’m fine.”

Jack raises his eyebrows, “Are you hurting?”

“Only a bit.”

Jack nods, “Then what’s going on? Is it the nightmare?”

Mac opens his mouth to say something, then changes his mind and holds out his phone for Jack to see. It’s been a while since he showed Jack the messages, but he can’t stand to read this one out loud. It’s an almost poetic description of his body. Mac had almost thrown up when he had first read it and it seems like Jack is having a similar reaction.

“I swear Mac,” Jack basically growls, “I won’t let him touch you.”

“You can’t promise that,” Mac says, “He’s gotten me before and he can do it again. He has the upper hand.”

“And you have us,” Jack says, coming up to him and wrapping him in another hug, “We’ll keep you safe, he doesn’t stand a chance against all of us.”

Mac doesn’t say anything, just letting himself relax, for once since this whole thing started, in Jack’s embrace.

“I’ll keep you safe, Mac.”


	18. Chapter 18

“Is there anything you’re hungry for?” Jack asks, reaching for his car keys. 

Mac shakes his head.

“Come on, kiddo, you’ve got to want something. You’ve been eating my chili for a week now, aren’t you sick of that?”

Mac shrugs. He’s forcing himself to eat anything right now. Nothing sounds good, and he’s not craving anything. Just the thought of food is making him feel vaguely sick, but he knows he has to eat if he wants to heal. 

“Ok, well, I’ve known you long enough to know what you like, so I’ll surprise you.” Jack gives Mac a weak smile, and Mac gives him an equally shaky one in return. 

Jack closes and locks the door behind him, and Mac listens to his footsteps fade down the hall. Jack’s been running all the errands for them both, and going alone anywhere Mac doesn’t absolutely have to be with him, which for now is mostly just Phoenix medical to get his wounds checked and make sure everything’s healing how it’s supposed to. Mac doesn’t want to leave the apartment. He doesn’t want anyone to see the brand on his neck, doesn’t want people to wonder or even worse ask questions. 

He doesn’t think he’ll ever feel like going outside again. He knows eventually that will change, that he’ll find a way to hide the mark with collars or his hair, and that he’ll try to go back to normal, because that’s what he always does. But right now, he just hates it. He doesn’t look in the mirror anymore, he doesn’t like seeing the damage Murdoc’s done.

Matty sends him a text every day updating him on the progress of the search for Murdoc. So far, nothing has been found. None of Riley’s searches of facial recognition on cameras, or her digging through the dark web, has turned up anything. They can’t even trace the number Murdoc is sending his creepy texts through. 

Riley and Bozer have both come over to see him, but Mac knows he’s not very good company right now. His back still hurts all the time, and he’s always trying to cover up the brand, and he knows both Riley and Bozer saw him in that barn. It’s not their fault, and he’s trying to remember that, but he feels small and ashamed and weak in front of them now. 

His phone, on the coffee table, buzzes, and he jumps, panicky. Just hearing that message notification is enough to send his heart rate through the roof these days. 

He’s not sure he wants to see what the taunt of today is, but if it’s Jack checking in, or Matty or Riley or Bozer, and he doesn’t look at it, they’ll worry and rush over, and he doesn’t need that either. 

He slowly turns the phone over and opens the message notification.

As usual, it’s a photo and a line of text. Today, though, the picture is timestamped. And it’s of Jack, in the aisle of a store, taking a package of steak from the meat cooler.

_ Planning a cookout and didn’t invite me? That was rude. Do you think I should tell Dalton he’s not very hospitable? _

Mac drops the phone, choking back a cry that’s part fear, part anger. The photo was taken seconds before the message was sent. 

_ Murdoc is right there. Right there in the store with Jack. _ Mac’s heart is racing, he can feel it pounding in his ears, and icy fear shoots through him, colder than the winter wind in the barn those weeks ago. 

He snatches up the phone with shaking hands. He has to warn Jack... _ Will Murdoc know if I do that? Will he kill Jack because I told him? _

He isn’t sure if Murdoc being able to access his phone number means he also sees what Mac sends and what calls he makes. Riley doesn’t think so, but since they can’t even figure out how Murdoc is doing this, she can’t be sure. Mac bites his lip, thinking desperately of some way to warn Jack that things are wrong.

He sends a short text, hoping Jack will understand that it means danger.  _ I decided I’m hungry for some baba ganoush after all. _ Baba Ganoush means Cairo, which means  _ danger. _

The answering text is just as brief.  _ Got it, on my way. _

Mac bites down hard on his lip, tasting blood, as a second thought occurs to him.  _ Murdoc probably knows which car is Jack’s _ . He can’t stand the thought of Jack getting into the car, ready to rush home, only to have it explode. 

_ Remember the car was acting strange? Don’t forget to get it checked while you’re out. _

He’s sure Jack is confused, and he wishes he could call...maybe he can. He just needs someone else’s phone.

He unlocks the door and rushes across the hall to Janese’s apartment. She’s looked after Jack’s place when he’s gone, she knows Mac too. She opens the door when Mac pounds on it, and he wonders why she looks as shocked as him, until he realizes that he’s panicking and also that he forgot to wear something that covers up his brand today.

“Please, can I borrow your phone?”

“Sure, Mac.” She fishes it out of her pocket, still staring at him. “Is something wrong?”

“Uh...mine’s dead, need to talk to Jack.” He hopes that’s a good enough explanation.

He takes the phone and steps into the hall, dialing the number he’s memorized by heart. 

He’s relieved when Jack picks up on the first ring. “Janese! Is everything okay? Is Mac…”

“It’s Mac. Jack, it’s me.” He gasps out. “Murdoc…”

“Is he there? Mac, are you okay?”

“No, he’s not here he’s there. Where you are,” Mac says, starting to shake. He can’t breathe, he can’t think, he has no idea where Murdoc has gone, if he’s still stalking Jack through the grocery store. “Jack, he sent me…” He chokes on a sudden terrified sob. “He sent me a picture of you. From right now.”

“That bastard. Could you tell where he was?” Jack asks. Mac hears the click of a gun being readied.  _ Jack’s always got his gun hidden on him. _

“Jack, don’t. Please, come home, just come home.” Mac is crying in earnest now. “Please, just come back.”

“Okay, kiddo, okay, I’m coming.” Jack’s voice is soft and gentle. “I’m coming, Mac.” 

Mac sinks down against the wall, dropping the phone and wiping the tears off his face. He takes a shaky breath, he just has to be okay until Jack gets home. Just till Jack gets home. 


	19. Chapter 19

Mac takes a few shaky breaths to calm himself down and wipes the tears off his face before managing to stand up. He goes back into Janese’s apartment and hands her back his phone.

“What’s going on, Mac? Is everything okay?” she asks. Her eyes move to his neck for a second before returning to his face, but she doesn’t say anything about the brand.

“Yeah, everything’s fine. I just forgot to tell Jack to buy some stuff,” he lies.

Mac suspects that Janese doesn’t believe him, but she doesn’t call him out on that instead saying, “Take care of yourself Mac.”

“I will,” he says, “Thank you for letting me use your phone.”

“Of course” she says.

Mac lets out a small sigh in relief as she closes the door behind him and he quickly goes back inside Jack’s apartment and locks the door and secures the chain. He knows that Murdoc is nowhere near him right now, but he can’t help himself. It makes him feel marginally safer. He picks up his phone from the ground where he dropped it in his hurry to get to Janese’s apartment. He flips it over to see another message from Murdoc.  _ Papa bear won’t be this lucky next time. _

Mac starts shaking all over again. The only thing stopping him from falling into a full blown panic attack is the fact that he knows Jack is on the way back, he should be here any minute. And just as that thought passes through his mind, Mac hears the door opening, being stopped by the chain at the top.

“Mac?” Jack’s worried voice says from outside the door, “Can you let me in?”

Mac quickly runs to the door and unchains it. When he sees Jack, he looks over him, looking over him and checking him for any signs of injury. He knows Jack notices, but Jack doesn’t say anything, just walking inside. Jack locks the door and chains it. Mac knows Jack is being extra precautions for his benefit, and he appreciates it. 

“Jack,” he says, his breath suddenly hitching. 

“I’m okay, kid. Don’t worry, he didn’t get to me,” Jack says before engulfing him in a hug.

Mac breaks down sobbing, the past few week’s stress and constant fear from Murdoc has finally caught up to him.

“It’s okay kid, you can let it out. We’re safe, Murdoc can’t get to you as long as I’m here,” Jack says, continuing his reassurances in a soothing voice.

His sobbing is interrupted by the notification sound from Mac’s phone. Mac knows it’s Murdoc and he doesn’t want to look at it, doesn’t want to know what Murdoc is saying now, but he knows he has too. His phone is still clenched in his fist and he turns the phone to look at the screen.  _ I love listening to you cry. _

Mac’s breath catches and he starts sobbing all over again,  _ Murdoc is right here, he’s listening to us right now. _

“Jack,” he manages, “Please Jack, we have to go. I can’t stay here any more. Please.”

His phone rings again and this time the message says,  _ Hearing you beg is so satisfying, but you can’t hide from me. _

Jack gently pulls the phone out from Mac’s clenched hand, glances at the messages, then drops the phone and breaks it under his foot. He does the same with his own phone then pulls out a burner phone and extra gun hidden in his drawer. 

“Grab your stuff, kid,” Jack says, “We can’t stay here any longer.”


	20. Chapter 20

“Thanks for doing this, Matty,” Jack says. “Seriously.” 

“I can’t have you two anywhere Murdoc can get to you. This house has the same level of security as the CIA.” Matty glances at Mac’s haggard face, her eyes sad and her expression soft. “You’ll be safe here.” 

Jack tosses his duffel bag on the couch, and Matty glares. “BUT, while you two are here, I expect you to respect my house and keep it neat. Jack, I’m talking to you. No feet on my furniture. At least not with boots on.” 

“Yes, ma’am.” Jack picks up his bag again.

Matty leads them to the spare room. She has an office with a pullout couch too, but Jack and Mac both wanted to stay together. It feels a little safer. 

Mac puts his own go bag down on a chair in the corner of the room, then sits down on the bed. Jack eases himself down beside Mac, then bounces slightly and smiles a little. “Dude, Matty springs for the good stuff. Or...you know, no springs. I think this is memory foam, man. I am gonna sleep like a baby.”

“You mean wake up hungry at all hours of the night yelling for someone to feed you?” Mac chuckles weakly.  _ Knew that would rile him up. _ Mac likes shredding Jack’s cliches. And it distracted him from the whirlpool in his head for a little while at least.

“Yeah. Wonder if Matty has anything good in her fridge.”

“You want to raid Matty’s fridge?” Mac asks, shaking his head. “Do you actually want her to kill you?”

“Point taken,” Jack says, then glances at his watch. “You about ready to turn in, Hoss? It’s been a hell of a long day.”

Mac nods, his hair falling over his face and making him look like a small child.

They take turns getting ready in the bathroom down the hall. Jack grimaces at the sight of the brand clearly visible above the collar of Mac’s ratty AC/DC t-shirt; well, it’s as good as his now, although it was Jack’s in some long-forgotten time. The only time Mac lets his scar show and doesn’t seem to be as worried about covering it up is at night, because sleeping in Jack’s t-shirts seems to be comforting, even if the necks of most of them are ragged and stretched out, and don’t do a thing to hide that brand. 

Matty knocks on the bedroom door as Jack’s turning down the covers. “You two decent, or am I going to see something I’d prefer not to if I walk in?”

Jack shakes his head. “Yeah, Matty, we’re good in here.” 

The door opens, and Matty steps in. “I’ve armed all the security on the house. I assume, Jack, you have your gun on you.”

“And my backup, and my backup-backup. And two knives.”

“Good. There are three more and seven mags in my gun safe.” 

Jack nods. 

“There’s a five man tac team geared and ready in the foreclosed house two doors down. And Riley has a small camera installed at each of the inbound roads. You’ll have a seven-minute warning of any suspicious vehicles approaching.”

“Thank you, Matty.” 

Matty smiles. “Get some rest, boys.” 

Mac nods. He’s already yawning. Jack glances at him, then smiles. “Come on, kiddo.” Mac crawls in under the covers, and Jack slips in beside him, just close enough that Mac can feel his presence. 

Jack finally drifts off to sleep around midnight, after repeated assurances from Riley, via text, that the night shift at Phoenix is monitoring her cameras and prepared to react at a moment’s notice.

He’s woken up what feels like moments later by a sharp cry. 

He sits up, instantly alert. Mac is huddled up against the headboard, knees drawn to his chest, arms wrapped around his legs. Jack can feel the bed shaking slightly, but aside from that first sob, Mac is totally silent.

“Kiddo?” Jack whispers, not wanting to touch him until he’s sure Mac is fully aware and won’t mistake him for Murdoc.

The only answer is a faint sniffle. 

“Mac?”

“Sorry.” It’s so quiet Jack almost misses it.

“Mac, you don’t have to apologize. Hell, you didn’t even hit me this time, what are you sorry about?” Jack asks, scooting up a little closer.

“Matty, she’s letting us stay, and I’m gonna bother her…” Mac trails off as a series of soft footsteps approaches the door.

“Blondie, you okay?” Matty asks, her voice sounding softer with sleepiness.

“I’m sorry,” Mac says, a little more loudly. “Didn’t mean to wake you up.” Jack can see tears in his eyes, and he can’t tell whether they’re from fear, guilt, or shame. 

“Not like I was getting a lot of sleep anyway,” Matty says, opening the door slowly. “Mac, don’t worry about it. You’re allowed to have nightmares, you’re not a burden. No matter what anyone told you before.”

Jack nods. It’s not often Matty shows so much of her soft side, but he knows how much she cares about this team, and right now, Mac needs to be allowed to see it clearly. 

Matty sits down on the edge of the bed. “Mac, no one is going to be mad at you for nightmares. We all have them. Any agent who’s ever been part of an op gone bad does. I promise you, that doesn’t make you a problem. And it certainly doesn’t mean you need to apologize. What happened to you is never your fault.” 

Jack nods. Mac snuggles in a little closer to him, resting his head on Jack’s chest, and Jack gently puts an arm around him, careful not to put too much pressure on his still tender back and shoulders. 

Mac’s shaky breaths finally slow, and Jack feels him relax.  _ Good, the kid’s asleep.  _ He glances at Matty, and she gives him  a nod.  _ I can rest too. We’re being looked out for. _


	21. Chapter 21

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> At long last, here it is, the conclusion of our fic!

Jack wakes up to the sound of soft gasps. He rolls over and glances at Mac, who’s shivering even though he’s got the sheets and the patchwork quilt wrapped around him like a cocoon, and the Texas night air is balmy.

“Please, stop.” Mac’s voice is barely more than a hoarse whisper, but Jack understands what he’s saying perfectly. He’s heard the same nightmares for the past few months.

He’d hoped coming back here to Texas might help Mac finally shake the worst of the awful memories. It had helped a lot when they got back from the mess that ended both their careers in the Sandbox. Mac had been traumatized and jumpy, but spending hours each day around the horses and cattle had helped him heal, and by the time they went back to L.A. he’d been more or less settled back into civilian life. 

But for some reason, the nightmares haven’t calmed down at all. Jack knows his mom was worried when she saw Mac. Jack’s gotten sadly used to the too-skinny figure and the dark shadows under Mac’s eyes, but the minute Momma saw how awful Mac looked she started fussing over him, making his favorite meals and insisting he needed to get some good sleep tonight away from city traffic and lights. 

Mac shifts again in his sleep, and Jack sits up straighter. “Mac?” he says gently, trying to wake him without touching him. Mac doesn’t react well to touch when he’s lost in these dreams. “Hey, kiddo, you with me?”

Mac just whimpers and curls up a little tighter. “Leave me alone, please, why are you doing this?”

Jack’s heart breaks. “Mac, kiddo, it’s just me. It’s just Jack. It’s okay, you’re safe.”

Mac finally blinks awake, rolling over slowly. 

“I’m sorry,” He whispers.

“For what? Hogging all the covers?” Jack asks, gently teasing. “That’s the only thing you even need to  _ consider _ being sorry for, okay?”

Mac smiles weakly, then unrolls himself from some of the blankets and hands them to Jack. Jack settles back in, feeling Mac curl up a little closer to him. As long as Mac’s initiating the physical contact, Jack is more than willing to let him have this method of comfort. He wraps an arm gently and loosely around Mac, who huddles up a little more and wraps his fingers through Jack’s. 

Both of them sleep soundly until the smell of coffee and bacon in the morning coaxes them out of sleep and downstairs to where Momma is making breakfast. 

Mac eats like he’s starving, and Jack shakes his head even though he’s secretly glad to see Mac do more with his food than just push it around on his plate with a fork. 

“Hey, slow down and enjoy Momma’s biscuits ‘stead of just inhaling them, why don’t you?” He chuckles. “She made plenty for the both of us.”

Momma smiles. “I’ll make as many as you’ll eat, and knowing you two, that’ll be quite a bit.” She slides a fresh helping of fried potatoes onto Mac’s plate, and then goes back to the poached eggs. When she finishes with them, Jack puts his own on top of one of his biscuits, letting the still liquid yolk soak into the fluffy bread. Mac eats his on his plate, mopping up the yolk with chunks of biscuit instead. He looks like a small child in one of Jack’s old sweatshirts, the sleeves too long and covering his hands when he reaches for the mug of coffee. 

Jack smiles and finishes his own food, setting his plate in the sink and grabbing his hat and jacket off the coat rack. “Hey, kiddo, ready to go check on the critters?” Mac nods, and Jack watches him slip two more biscuits into his sweatshirt pocket when he stands up. 

“Thanks for breakfast,” He says shyly.

“Any time. My door and my kitchen are always open to you, Mac.” Momma says gently, smiling as she watches him follow Jack out the door. 

Jack slings an arm over Mac’s shoulder as they walk towards the barn. The weather is nice with a cool breeze. Mac doesn’t say anything as they walk together, only leaning into Jack’s half-hug.

A shiver goes through him when the wind picks up and Jack pulls Mac closer to him, he knows how much Mac hates being cold.

When they reach the barn, a shiver goes though Mac again and Jack has a feeling this has nothing to do with the wind.

“We can go back, kid. There’s no shame in that,” Jack says.

Mac has been putting off going to the barn for days now and Jack knew exactly why. There were too many bad memories for Mac and he hated that Murdoc had taken something calming away from Mac and turned it into a source of fear.

“It’s fine,” Mac says, “I haven’t seen Xenon yet.”

Mac had been delighted when Jack had given him a horse and told him that he could name him whatever he wanted. Mac had decided on “Xenon” saying it was the 54 element, but Jack had a feeling it was also because of Xenophon, the old greek author who wrote treatises on horsemanship.

When they both stepped inside the barn, Mac starts slightly shaking. Jack squeezes his shoulder, reassuringly to let him know that they can leave anytime Mac wants. Mac smiles at him and his shaking slowly recedes.

Jack lets Mac go up to Xenon while he goes to his own horse, who he named Crowe, and watches with a smile as Mac gently lays his hand on Xenon. He’s saying something quietly enough that Jack can’t make out and a small small appears on Mac’s face.

Jack just watches them silently as Mac continues whispering to Xenon. It’s been a long time since he’s seen Mac look so relaxed and happy and Jack knows that things are getting better for him. There are still going to be long nights and nightmares and Mac won’t really ever feel safe until they catch Murdoc, but things are looking up and getting better. And Jack knows Mac will make it through this..

**Author's Note:**

> Please tell us what you think about this!!!


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